The present invention relates to electrical connectors. In order to provide better conductivity, it is desired to increase the contact area between the terminals of a pair of connectors. Consequently, it is preferred that contact sections are provided on the surface of terminal sheet.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-163054 discloses connectors having such terminals. The terminals are made by bending sheet metal to provide sufficient flexibility for contact. However, the contact position can be moved, providing poor contact and putting a limit to the fine arrangement of terminals. When an impact is applied to the electronic device, terminals can move to transmit the impact to the housing, resulting in the damaged housing.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-143801 discloses a connector having a terminal with an indentation to prevent the contact position from moving, especially from lateral movement.
The terminal of JP' 801 is made by stamping so that the widthwise direction of the terminal is in the direction of thickness. That is, the terminal is not made by bending in the thicknesswise direction so that the stamping process becomes complicated, resulting in the high manufacturing cost. Also, there is provided low degrees of flexibility, requiring a long contact arm to provide a satisfactory flexibility. This leads to a large connector. To prevent this, the arm must be curved many turns, resulting in the high manufacturing cost.
According to JP' 054, the direction in which sheet metal is processed is changed to provide an inexpensive and flexible terminal. This method, however, cannot used for the terminal of JP' 801.